Ashton Moynihan, the funding director of the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, passed away Friday afternoon after a long battle with cancer.
Moynihan grew up in Charlottesville, Virginia, where she graduated from Sweet Briar College. Her father, Harrison “Chief” Nesbit was a football player and then coach at the University of Virginia.
Her first job was selling advertising for an equine publication. Her love of horses led her to New York, where she worked for a Thoroughbred racing partnership, and finally to Lexington, Kentucky.
Moynihan worked at Fasig-Tipton for more than 15 years, running their Stallion Access seasons and shares, and scheduling yearling inspections. After taking several years off to raise two daughters, she joined the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance.
“Everybody who ever met Ashton thought she was one of the kindest, sweetest people that they've met,” said Darby Dan's John Phillips, the president of the TAA. “Everybody adored her. She was thorough, professional, and utterly kind. Everyone loved her, and will deeply miss her.”
Said Fasig-Tipton's Boyd Browning, “She was an extraordinary person who was loved by everyone who came in contact with her. She was passionate about Thoroughbred horses, passionate about Thoroughbred aftercare, and passionate about her family. She was a wonderful employee when she worked at Fasig-Tipton, charged with dealing with some of the biggest names in the industry, and her character was revealed when she decided it was more important to raise her family.”
Moynihan is survived by her two daughters, Madison and Emory.
“Some of Madi and my fondest childhood memories consist of running around the Fasig office with her colleagues who came to be her best friends and family, and they will remain that way always to us,” said Emory and Madison in a statement. “She raised Madi and I alongside her best friends, Bill and Kelley Farish. She loved their kids, all eight of them as her own. Mom's dedication and love can been seen through her work with the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance where she was Director of Funding. She was loved by so many, especially Bill Graves, whom we know she is now reunited with which brings us both great happiness. We know this world won't be the same without her smile, but we now all have the most special angel looking out for us.”
Visitation will be from 5-7 p.m. Monday, January 27, at the Kerr Brothers Funeral Home, 463 East Main Street, Lexington, Kentucky.
Funeral Services will be held on Tuesday, January 28, 2020 at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church at 3 p.m..
In lieu of flowers, her family requests that donations be made to the TAA, and her friends have organized a Go Fund me page to do so which may be accessed by clicking here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-memory-of-ashton-moynihan
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